Tag Archives: Flashback Fridays

Sunday Game Plan – NYC Winter Restaurant Week 2025 and game plan for 2026.

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NYC Restaurant Week is back! From 01/20/26 to 02/12/26, 653 restaurants have signed up, which was 56 more restaurants than last year’s restaurant week. A year ago, I devised a game plan of my top 10 restaurants I would dine based on convenience. The first restaurant I dined for NYC restaurant week last year was Lure Fishbar which was not on my list, but I left work early that day and they were still offering the lunch menu. It was my first time in over 15 years that I step foot into this restaurant. The ambiance remained the same. To celebrate I order the rock shrimp tempura and salmon with two wine pairings, which at that time was about $60 plus tax and tip. Lure Fishbar is participating in this season’s restaurant week and are serving the same dishes for lunch, but the total cost is now $75 with the wine pairing plus tax and tip.

Rock Shrimp Tempura
Miso Glazed Salmon

We ventured into New Hyde Park for lunch at Luigi’s Restaurant for the two course $30 lunch. We ordered fried calamari and meatball for appetizers, which were already filling. I ordered the salmon peperonata and meatball parm hero as the main entrees. We ended up eating half of the entrees and taking the rest home, but the zucchini chips had to be consumed fresh. Luigi’s Restaurant is participating in this season’s restaurant week and are serving the same dishes for lunch for $30.

Fried Calamari
Meatballs
Salmon Peperonata
Meatball Parm Hero

A friend of mine recommended Lincoln Ristorante especially their rigatoni dish. The restaurant has an open kitchen, which was cool because the diner can observe how the dishes are being made. I ordered a glass of Gavi to pair with my meal. The server provide a complimentary focaccia. For my three course meal ($60) I ordered the sunchokes and puntarelles which was refreshing. Then I had the rigatoni amatriciana, which tasted great and ended dinner with the chocolate tortino. Lincoln Ristorante is also participating in this season’s restaurant week, but their menu this season does not offer the dishes from the previous year. However, the rigatoni amatriciana and chocolate tortino are still being served as a la carte dishes.

I met with my friend in Long Island City to dine for restaurant week at Jiang Nan. We arrived right before happy hour ended and started off with cocktails. Then we ordered our five course meal which included a glass of red or white wine, dim sum, vegetable dish, appetizer, a main entree and dessert.

For appetizers we chose the boiled chicken with chili sauce on the side and the homestyle crispy fish. We enjoyed the crispy fish. The boiled chicken platter was beautifully presented and interactive. For vegetables we chose the baby cabbage in chicken broth and stir fry string bean. For dim sum we had a sampling of steam pork soup dumpling and a peking duck spring rolls, both tasted good when consumed fresh. For the entrees we chose the sweet and sour pork tenderloin and the crispy shrimp with honey walnuts. The Crispy shrimp with honey walnuts were our overall favorite. To end the dining experience we ordered the gluten rice cake with brown sugar and the mango Pomelo with sago. We were not impressed with the mango Pomelo but we did enjoy the gluten rice cake with brown sugar. Unfortunately they are not participating in this season’s restaurant week, but have expanded their franchise in the last year.

Happy hour cocktails
Sweet and sour pork tenderloin
Boiled Chicken
Stir fry string beans
Baby Cabbage in Chicken Broth
Homestyle crispy fish
Peking duck spring roll
Crispy honey walnut shrimp
Steamed Pork Soup Dumplings
Gluten rice cake with brown sugar
Mango pomelo with sago

My friend visited me at work and we dined in Delmonico’s for dinner. We started off with the sake and an espresso martini. For our appetizers, we had the Yellowtail crudo and the burrata. For our entrees, we both got the steaks (the steak did not come with a side) so we shared a side order of mashed potatoes. Finally, for dessert, we got the chocolate cake and cheesecake. Everything hit the spot. Delmonico’s is participating in this season’s restaurant week and are serving the same dishes for lunch and dinner for $60. Drinks are additional.

Espresso Martini
Sake
Yellowtail Crudo
Burrata
Delmonico Filet Mignon with a side of mashed potatoes
Chocolate cake and cheesecake

During my commute since 01/07/26, I’ve developed a bucket list of restaurants I want to dine and support new restaurants especially the ones with the best deals. Unfortunately, I won’t be participating as much as I would have liked due to the upcoming Long Island Restaurant Week, life and priorities. Here’s the my wish list for this season’s restaurant week:

  1. Mokyo
  2. Sake No Hana
  3. La Baraka
  4. Le B
  5. Red Room Bar (Printemps)
  6. Koi
  7. House of Red Pearl
  8. Tuome
  9. Crown Shy
  10. Sea by Jungsik

Long Island Restaurant Week also starts on 01/25/26 to 02/01/26. Stay tuned for the game plan/wish list.

Flashback Friday – Best Dishes of 2025

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Happy New Year 2026!! Happy 10th Anniversary of Tablespoons and teaspoons. The mission shifted from creating economic friendly and healthy dishes using only a tablespoon and a teaspoon to restaurant recommendations based on the support received. I struggled getting legitimate followers while blocking spammers. Upon entering the 10th year of this blog, I am happy to share my top dishes of 2025, some of which are the best dishes that I’ve had at least the launch of this blog.

Best dining experience – Bridges – One star Michelin

This restaurant was one of the hardest places to get into. There was a cancellation for one person and I received a phone about 30 minutes prior to opening to ask if I was able to dine in on the spot. Thankfully this place was a bus ride away that I was able to capitalize on the opportunity. This tiny restaurant is address hidden in the middle of businesses in Chinatown. No wonder why it was one of the hardest spots to get into.

I started off with a mock sparkling wine called the Muri Yamile from Denmark. Then I had to have to their infamous Comte tart and it was my lucky day because this dish was topped with lots of Perigold truffles and mushrooms. One of the best dishes I’ve had this year to date. For my entree, I got the grilled king crab with lime leaf and daikon. I also paired this dish with an orange wine called Autre-Chose Les Calots. One of the best wine pairings this year as the buttery juices of the crab was chased and balanced with the chenin Blanc. To end the night I had the vin jaune gelato and it was amazing, absorbing the chenin blanc flavors. Service was amazing here. Staff were knowledgeable and proactive in making me feel welcomed and upselling wine lol. 

Comté tart with chanterelles and black truffle
Grilled King Crab
Vin jaune gelato

Best Red Meat Dish – Short Rib Pastrami Suya – Tatiana by Kwame Onwuwachi

The pastrami melted in your month. The dish was deconstructed to make a pastrami slider with the cabbage and coco bread. Everything put together made it a perfect slider bite.

Short Rib Pastrami Suya

Best Seafood Dish – well I have a top 3:

1) Khmer Fish Cakes at Bayon – these fish cakes tasted better than most Thai restaurants I have dined and I am half Thai. Flavors were pronounced and balanced, it is definitely worth ordering.

2) Seafood Wellington at Le B – this dish was served during the NYC Summer Restaurant Week. It is literally the seafood version of a beef wellington. Beautifully presented this dish has me wanting more and wishing that it was on their regular menu.

3) Txangurro at Chez Fifi – this Basque deviled crab served as a shared appetizer is to die for at one of the hardest restaurants to get into. I would return to this restaurant just for this crab dish alone.

Seafood Wellington
Txangurro
Khmer Fish Cakes

Best Desserts – another list of my top 3:

  1. Coconut Pandan Chiffon Cake at Bangkok Supper Club – this cake was presented inside a young coconut. It is one of two desserts served at this restaurant and it is worth ordering.
  2. Chocolate chantilly mousse at Chez Fifi – this mousse is actually very light and the chocolate shavings adds another level to the consumption experience. This dessert is made for two people.
  3. Corn Ice Cream at Konban – this unique dessert is worth trying once. This is corn ice cream mixed with white chocolate. I loved the presentation in the form of a corn cob despite waiting a while to cut through the corn the flavors together in one bite.
Coconut pandan chiffon cake
Chocolate Chantilly mousse
Konban corn ice cream

That is all for now. Stay tuned for more dining adventures and homecooked dishes containing evidence based research.

Flashback Friday – US Open

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It’s been a while since my Throwback Thursday post. I actually can’t remember when I last posted. I guess parenthood plays a huge part. Anyways, over the recent holiday weekend, I went to the US Open. Thank you, American Express and Mount Sinai, for the awesome experience. Thank you to the chefs and restaurants participating in an awesome Flavors of the Open. It was great seeing familiar faces and new ones as well. The weather was hot and beautiful. The food at Flavors of the Open was great, not so much at the US Open itself, maybe because the chefs are not present to do quality control. Here is a video highlighting this year’s experience.

2023 US Open

This video is a little over 5 minutes, and it highlights my views watching several players compete, including US Open Women’s champ Coco Gauff and the comeback of Caroline Wozniacki.

I have sampled the food at the actually US Open, particularly the Heineken bar and Mojitos. I was drinking Aperol Spritz. The burger with the fries and the yucca fries were my top dishes for this year. I also had the tuna ceviche, and it was a lot of avocado and less of the tuna. The steak quesadilla was good, too.

There were lots of fun activities such as pictures, virtual reality games, and 5 minute massages.

I’m hoping that next year or when the child turns 5, we can go to the US Open Fan week.

Flashback Friday – Calle Dao

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Happy 2021! It’s been an interesting and unprecedented 2020 with the pandemic that turned the planet upside down. We are very grateful to be alive, healthy and employed *knock on wood*. One of major changes that took place in 2020 was the shutdown of business especially restaurant and food industries. Many famous restaurants, mom and pop restaurants and even landmark restaurants closed down permanently because their businesses suffered tremendous loss due to the restrictions that were set in place in order to keep people safe.

Prior to the pandemic and shutdown, my friend recommended an emerging restaurant chain somewhat that specializes in Cuban Chinese Cuisine. The restaurant is called Calle Dao. There are two locations one in Chelsea and the other in Bryant Park. They have a sister restaurant called Favela Cubana. They had happy hour until 7pm for discounted drinks and food. My friend and I have only been to the Bryant Park location because it was convenient especially during this pandemic. We came on a Monday evening during the summer and early this week for outdoor dining. The first time the outdoor dining setup in the summer was an open space. Recently, the restaurant revamped their outdoor dining space by building adding walls all round and heaters above every table. The new setup was very cozy, warm and toasty. We had the same server, his name was Marvin. Marvin was very nice, friendly, accommodating and generous. More importantly due to increased expenses incurred during the restaurant’s 10 day closure to set up outdoor dining for the winter, an 8% COVID surcharge was now added to the check. The COVID surcharge was implemented by NYC around October to help restaurants sustain themselves. Anyways, let’s get to the food and drink:

  • Tostones $8 during Happy Hour
  • Shiitake Spring Rolls $10 during Happy Hour
  • Crispy Wings $9 during Happy Hour
  • Sangria $8 during Happy Hour
  • Prosecco $8 during Happy Hour
Happy Hour Grub from 4pm-7pm Monday to Friday

Tostones – great deal for a solo meal and definitely meant for sharing.

Shiitake Spring Rolls – pricey for the portion, but a great option for vegetarians.

Crispy Wings – another great deal but it is definitely sticky and messy.

Sangria – a must have here and highly recommended; they also have the option for a white sangria. FYI red wine is more health benefits than white.

Prosecco – a great alternative if you want to go light on the alcohol

In addition to happy hour bites and drinks, we also ordered additional food, which appeared to be pricey, but deceivingly large that we ate half and took the other half home. Both dishes tasted amazing and it’s low carb.

  • Biān Pào SALMON $31
    Pan Roasted, Glazed with Sriracha, Ginger & Cilantro, Saffron- Black Sesame Cauliflower Rice, and String Beans
  • BEEF & BROCCOLI $28
    Smoked Short Rib, Shiitake Mushroom, Chinese Broccoli dressed in Garlic Hoisin (it comes with noodles, but my friend was on a low carb diet)

We will definitely return to explore our happy hour deals at all three locations and definitely try their brunch menu. This restaurant is worth trying especially if you want to experience Cuban Chinese cuisine.

Cheers to 2021!!

Flashback Friday – 2018 NYC Summer Restaurant Week

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TGIF — It’s Flashback Friday and it’s been over six weeks since I’ve last posted here.  Well, it’s restaurant week again and we are entering the last seven days of this high end eating on a budget event.  This year’s restaurant week started on July 23 and ends next Friday, August 17.

Did you know that NYC restaurant week started 26 years ago to welcome the Democratic National Convention (DNC)? We all know who won the election.  Anyways, back to food, NYC restaurant week started with 95 participating restaurants in 1992 to approximately quadrupling to 380 in 2018.  This season, few restaurants in Brooklyn, Queens and even Staten Island are jumping on the bandwagon for this budget friendly opportunity.  This season was disappointing because lunch/brunch meals are only two courses (appetizer with entree or dessert) for $26 and a three course dinner remains at $42.

After 3 weeks of thorough review of 317 menus out of the 380 restaurants, here are the logistics that are broken down into: best lunch, dinner and brunch for 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5+ people.  Our criteria is comparing what the restaurant is offering for restaurant week to their daily lunch/dinner/brunch menu; for example, if crudo is part of the regular lunch appetizer menu, we want to see if the restaurant is serving the same item on their restaurant week menu.  Some restaurants are even offering parts of their regular as part of restaurant week, which is a great way to go.

We will begin with the total number of restaurants that are offering the best value meals for lunch, dinner and brunch based on our criteria.

Slide1Personally one of the reasons why I have yet to participate in this year’s restaurant week is because I am on a diet, which I will disclose at some point this weekend. Therefore, we created another table that breaks down the overall number of best value meals to accommodate the vegetarians, pescatarians, people in low carb diets (that’s me) and comfort (those who want to YOLO)!

Slide2

Even though I am on a diet, I do plan to take advantage of restaurant week, which is easier said than done because there is no control of how the food is made.  However, with the comfort meal types, the appetizers are either on the vegetarian, pescatarian and low carb side.  The hard part is dessert, which in case, lunch is ideal, but due to my full time job, I can’t take advantage of the lunch offerings this season.

In the past, I have shared my experiences of eating at restaurants for restaurant week and if you need any ideas or suggestions,  below is the list of places I have eaten at for past restaurant weeks:

Capital Grille at all three New York City locations (Grand Central, West 50s and wall Street) their 14 ounce bone-in dry aged sirloin steak is still being offered for this restaurant week.  In addition from now until September 2, Capital Grille is also offering what they call a “Generous Pour”, which costs only $28 for a tasting of seven wines with the purchase of dinner.   The suggestion for this restaurant week:

– Lunch for 1: Caesar Salad & Signature Cheeseburger with Truffle Fries

– Dinner for 2: Wedge of Bleu Cheese or Clam Chowder

Bone-In Dry Aged Sirloin Steak  (14oz) w/ Mashed Potatoes & Green Beans

Seared Citrus Glazed Salmon w/ Mashed Potatoes & Green Beans

Flourless Chocolate Espresso Cake and Creme Brulee

Fonda (Comfort Food) in the East Village has awesome happy hour specials, but for restaurant week it’s a good way to get four friends to get together for drinks and happy times.  Check out my post on what the guacamole, enchilada suizas and dessert (morenitas).

Blenheim (Comfort Food) a Michelin rated restaurant offers a stipulation from my experience eating here two years ago.  The menu changes frequently for the season, which makes it exciting.  This season, a solo dinner is the way to go with the following: Fried Chicken, Pork two ways and Chocolate cremeux.

Tavern 62 by David Burke (Comfort Food) located at the beginning of the Upper East Side is one of the few restaurants that are utilizing their regular menu have new customers try their food and feel that they belong. They have great happy hour specials, where there are $10 burgers and $8 fries.   Check out the pictures and previous write up about the transition from Fishtail to Tavern62 by clicking on the “Tavern 62 by David Burke” link.  I do plan on returning to this restaurant because I feel welcomed but more importantly it’s a great deal for restaurant week and the customer will get their money’s worth.

Other restaurants I definitely want to try are the following:

Smith & Wollensky – Dinner for 4 – Comfort Food

Appetizer: Mixed Green Salad, Caesar Salad, Calamari, and Pea Soup

Entree: Filet Mignon, Lemon Pepper Chicken,  Salmon Waldorf, and Pan Roasted Branzino

Dessert: Cheesecake, Bourbon Pecan Pie, Chocolate Mousse Cake and Coconut Layer Cake with Vanilla Ice Cream

Barraca – Dinner for 2 – Pescatarian/Vegetarian

Appetizer: Ensalada de Mercado and Pulpo a Feira

Entree: Paella de Verdura (minimum 2 people) and Paella de Calamares

Desserts: Churros de Rellanos and Corte de Helado

In addition, offering a great $18 wine pairing deal for restaurant.  They are also one of the few restaurants that are offering a three course lunch meal for restaurant week for $26.  Plus, they have a great $6 happy hour menu from 4pm to 7pm.

Nickel and Diner – Dinner for 1 – Pescatarian/Low Carb

Appetizer: Smoked Salmon Chowder

Entree: Ginger Crusted Halibut

Desserts: Honey Semifreddo

In addition, they have a great happy hour menu from 3pm to 7pm.

Lugo Cucina Italiana – Lunch for 2 – Low Carb/Pescatarian/Vegetarian

Appetizer: Kale Mango Salad, Mussels Fra Diavolo

Entree: Salmone Al Forno, Eggplant Parmagiana

Although I may have disappeared here on my own site, but I am posting on my Instragram page: tablespoonsandteaspoons.  Please follow me.

I will continue to strive to post more often here.  Stay tuned….

 

 

 

Flashback Friday – Dosas

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Happy Friday! Although it is National Dessert Day, I have been fascinated about the popular Indian street food – Dosa.  When I first saw this dish, I was overwhelmed by the how big it is.  It is mostly served as a meal for a good part of the day.  Personally I have consumed it as an early dinner.

Dosas also known as Dosai is an ancient Tamil dish.  This gluten free, vegetarian street food dish is made up of rice and lentils.  Therefore, there are health benefits in its consumption.   Dosas are a good source of carbohydrates and protein that will last the whole day.  It is a lengthy process to make dosas and I don’t think that I will be making one anytime soon.  Therefore, I will be leaving this up to the pros.

Recently, I have had the experience of consuming this vegetarian dish at two places in New York City.   One famous spot world is Saravana Bhavan.  There are two locations in New York City (Manhattan).  This restaurant does not need an introduction because it is well known throughout India; the establishment of this franchise was made a controversial person who is banned from leaving India because he was convicted of murder.  This is to show that as long the food is good it does not matter where it originated from. But if you don’t want to be traumatized,  I visited another spot, which is located in Queens called Hillside Dosa Hutt.  This neighborhood spot is in the heart of the Indian community. The cashier that served us was hospitable and knowledgeable about Dosas.  Hillside Dosa Hutt was recently listed on the Eater list of the top 60 cheap eats places in NYC. 

Hillside Dosa Hutt – Marsala Dosa $5.50 (Top Left) and Paneer Bhurji Masala Dosa $9.00 (Bottom left) Saravana Bhavan $9.99- Marsala Dosa (Top right)  and Onion Chili Rava Dosa $10.99 (Bottom right)

Portions of each dosa were huge. I have not been able to finish a whole dosa in one sitting.  If you want more variety then Saravan Bhavan is the place to go, but for a quick meal on a budget then Hillside Dosa Hutt will suffice. 

 

 

 

Flashback Friday – Central Bar Happy Hour – NYC

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Happy Friday!! A few months ago I stopped by my colleague’s happy hour birthday party at Central Bar, which is an Irish bar in NYC.  It was a Friday night during Lent, where I decided to give up cheese and can’t eat meat.  In addition, I was on a diet.  Given the situation, I was limited to what I can order.  After scrolling the menu and I was impressed of the happy hour drink specials.  So I decided to participate by ordering the following:

Sweet potato fries $6 – House made sweet potato fries and chipotle mayo

Spiked Arnold Palmer $6 (happy hour) and $9 regular price – Firefly Sweet tea Vodka  and housemade lemonade

20160226_190557Food and drink was worth the price for happy hour.  The Spiked Arnold Palmer was well-balanced with tea/lemonade mixture and the vodka.  The sweet potato fries were perfect to absorb the alcohol content.

Personally, I love sweet potato fries and I was inspired to make my own, but I came across a product when I visited Trader Joes for only $2.29 for a 15 oz. package.  The package serves 5 people and each serving size is 3 ounces.  Now 3 ounces is equivalent to 5 tablespoons.  The fries were very good and well coated.

Recently there was a video posted on Tasty on making sweet potato fries.  Below is my product of the recipe.  Texture was crispy as I was mixing in the garnishes of salt, cheese and parsley.  The addition of cornstarch definitely added crispiness to the fries.  I just need more practice on mastering this dish.  Meanwhile, I will definitely stick to ordering at a restaurant or bar especially at Central Bar.

20160408_214202

Sweet potato fries are a healthy snack.  The history and health benefits on consumption are posted on my Meatless Monday post, which was also National Potato Lover’s Day.

Now that Lent is over, I would definitely return to Central Bar and take advantage of the drink specials and their potentially health friendly meat/cheese dishes.